Fixing Patrick Jane
by SarcasticTeenageGenius
Summary: "You shouldn't be up here, Teresa." She didn't know six words could hurt so much- but by god, she wasn't letting him shut her out anymore.


**Title: **Fixing Patrick Jane  
**Genre: **Angst/Hurt/Comfort  
**Rating: **T for dark themes  
**Pairing: **Teresa Lisbon/Patrick Jane  
**Tagged: **The Crimson Ticket  
**Summary: **"You shouldn't be up here, Teresa." She didn't know six words could hurt so much- but by god, she wasn't letting him shut her out anymore.  
**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Mentalist nor Fix You by Coldplay.

"_**Lights will guide you home..."**_

She stood at the foot of the stairs leading up to the attic, the one place she knew she could always find him- and after today, that might just be what he needed; that solitude that came with being in his favourite hiding spot. They'd lost Lorelei, his only connection to the killer of the only two women he'd ever love- his wife and his daughter. Red John had slipped out of his grip once more, and it didn't take the heart-wrenching sounds of his sobs through the floorboards below him to tell her that he had come up here to grieve in private. It was his light in the darkness, the one constant in his life. His _home._

"_**...and ignite your bones..."**_

She'd long since come to terms with the fact that he'd never return her feelings, and she didn't _want _him to, not if it meant he'd only lose himself in the process. His pain was all he had- and as much as she wanted to rid him of that, she'd need to give him back _himself_ first. His _identity. _That thought alone was what gave her the courage to do what she did next. She finally risked it; the first step up the stairs, flinching as it creaked under her weight. With it, though, came the next step, and before she knew it she was standing at the top. It was that quick- almost _too _quick, especially since she didn't exactly have a game plan, and for all she knew he'd just send her away to let him wallow in his misery for a little while longer. But she wouldn't let him, not this time- she _couldn't _let him. This had gone on far too long, and she'd gone too far to turn back now.

"_**...and I will try..."**_

This was a suicide mission if she ever saw one, of that she was certain. She'd been in the field plenty of times, sure, but this was one of the first times she'd ever truly felt fear like this- felt like she had something to lose that was worth having in the first place. She hesitantly slipped through the entrance and into the attic, spotting him standing by the open window almost immediately. He didn't turn to face her- no, he only let out a few soft, broken words that barely managed to reach her ears in the first place.

"You shouldn't be up here, Teresa."

"Why not? It's company property."

The sound of her own voice startled her- she hadn't expected to be able to speak so clearly, not when her heart was practically shattering inside of her. He seemed to recognize that, too, and obviously avoiding the elephant in the room wasn't what he wanted to do.

"This is _my _problem to deal with, and I _will_. Just leave me in _peace_."

"And I'm supposed to just stand here and watch you- watch you _wither away?_"

"If that's what it takes-"

"_No_, Jane. I'm done with waiting. I'm done with letting you... just _lock _me out of your life like this."

"It's for your own-"

"This isn't about my safety and you know it, Jane. If it's me you're worried about, then worry about the fact that- that _seeing _you like this kills me a little every day. But don't worry about my _safety."_

"You just don't get it, Teresa. He'll come after you! If he has _any_ idea how I feel about you, and I _know_ he does, he'll..."

His words trailed off uninterrupted this time. He'd finally turned to face her, she realized, though his eyes were still red from crying and his cheeks were stained with dried tears. In the meantime, she was positive her own heart had stopped. She knew what he meant, whether he said the words themselves or not. He'd told her once already, after all; pretended he hadn't afterwards, maybe, but they both knew better. It was only that assurance that stopped her from outright balking as he took a few staggering steps forward and wrapped his arms around her, his head burying into her neck as the tears started coming again. This was the man she loved- broken, wounded Patrick Jane.

"Teresa, I-"

"I know, Patrick. You don't have to say it. I know."

His grip on her only tightened then, and she let him sob into her shoulder without another word from either of them. This may not be the end of the topic itself, or of the pain he'd been living with for year after year now. It was, however, the end of the worst of it all. From here, it could only get better. _He'd _get better. She'd make sure of it, if it was the last thing she did.

"_**...to fix you."**_


End file.
